My wife wanted to give her mother a picture of a cardinal for Christmas, so I setup a little feeder in the backyard. Here are a few shots from this morning. I'm open to any feedback on how to make them better, as I haven't done a lot of bird photography.

acjd wrote:
Great start. You asked for feedback so the following is my opinion. If you're asking about future shots ...

For 1, 2, and 3 there is too much greenery. Less is more. I understand the holiday theme but I think there is too much and distracting.

For 1 and 2, the thick OOF branch in the front is a bit distracting.

For 3 and 4, the thick perch is out of proportion to the tiny feet of these birds. Perhaps put a different, thinner twig as a perch that is in proportion to the bird.

Finally, I'd try to shoot vertical. Just a thought. You have done well.

If you are asking about post processing, well that I don't know. ...Show more →

This is great feedback. Thanks!

I'm thinking I will tweak the branches a bit so they're more inclined to the back, and maybe shoot a little higher angle to avoid the branch in the front. #4 was just a nearby fallen tree, but I'll try some thinner branches around the feeder.

As for post, I don't do a lot of printing, so any tips on getting the vibrance from the cardinal would be great, if anyone has any experience there.

Mike, I can't help much in printing but I do know that SRGB supposedly does poorly for reds. From what I understand, shoot in Adobe RGB, do the post on a wide gamut monitor using ARGB throughout post. I suggest asking on the printing forum. There should be experts there. Best of luck.